Reviews of two new releases   Lil' Kim The Notorious KIM Queen Bee/Undeas/Atlantic Also of interest to forward-thinking young women: Foxy Brown, Jay-Z, Notorious B.I.G. On Hard Core, Lil' Kim came off like a pissed-off pimptress who only cared about dollars and what men could and would do for her Big Momma Thing. Strong female voices had always existed in hip-hop, from the days of Roxanne Shante and Salt N Pepa to Queen Latifah and Nikki D. These women demanded respect. Then Lil' Kim and Foxy Brown came on the scene; they cared more about power. Ironically, of course, they were protégées of Biggie Smalls and Jay-Z respectively. Their male Svengalis even wrote their rhymes. Four years after Hard Core, Kim is clearly still dealing with B.I.G.'s legacy, as the title of her latest attests. The Notorious KIM isn't so much a declaration of independence from Biggie's memory as a tribute to Kim's ex-lover and main artistic influence. She also clearly hopes it's an extension of his work. Unfortunately, Kim spends the whole album explaining how bad she is, telling but not showing. There's a stunted feeling to the record; concepts seem half-assed, dominated by the fake dramatic pretension that always hangs over the work of ubiquitous producer Puff Daddy. There seems to be some hope, like on the joyously lewd "Who's Number One?" and the tantalizingly foul "Suck My Dick." A touching duet with Mary J. Blige glimmers with the promise of introspection, rising above the many tracks littered with wasted cameos and missed opportunities. Overall, this album seems like a bloated reminder that Lil' is still the Queen Bitch. You are, Kim, you are. Just don't be boring about it. Cinnamon Jones         Joseph Arthur Come to Where I'm From Real World Records Of related interest: Tom Waits, Figure 8, Jesus' Son Joseph Arthur Dante's, 1 SW 3rd Ave., 226-6630. 10 pm Friday, July 21. $8 advance (Fastixx). Attention all Leonard Cohen/Elliott Smith depression addicts. The major-label debut of Joseph Arthur, the first non-world-music artist on Peter Gabriel's new label Real World, is dark, dreamy and meditative. If comparisons must be drawn, Come to Where I'm From runs in similar circles as Iggy Pop's stoicism, Radiohead singer Thom Yorke's melancholy wails and Tom Waits' swampy acoustic guitar and funky basement drums. Yes, he's for real. The New York singer-songwriter blends remorseful poetry into a dreary landscape of disillusioned characters, junkies and minions of the underworld battling lost love and faith. Arthur's people are regretful and introspective. On "Eyes On My Back," he mourns, "I wish I had eyes on my back/ So I could see my life going past/ Seems when it's good everything moves too fast/ And when it's gone you can't never get it back." The music is raw acoustic folk, with some psychedelic keyboard "fun" thrown in. All credit to this sad boy--this is different, and fine. Jay Nebel